


Madly Clumsy

by MiraMara



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-11
Updated: 2017-10-11
Packaged: 2019-01-16 01:16:07
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,024
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12332544
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MiraMara/pseuds/MiraMara
Summary: Marinette decides to help Chat Noir figure out who Ladybug isCross Posted from fanfiction.net





	1. Madly Clumsy Part 1

The Parisian night was cool as the pair huddled under a blanket on Marinette's balcony, sharing a thermos of hot chocolate. Chat Noir sighed dejectedly, looking out at the starless sky.

"I really wish I could figure out who she is," he bemoaned and Marinette wasn't sure if he was talking to her or just voicing his thoughts. "If only I could figure it out, it shouldn't be that hard, should it?" he turned to the girl beside him.

Marinette's brow puckered.

"But... she doesn't want you to reveal your identities, does she?"

"I know, I know, it's just... I don't think Ladybug takes me all that seriously. I'm in love with her," Chat Noir didn't notice the small gasp of surprise coming from Marinette's lips. "I just thought that, if I figured out who she was, proved that I saw all sides of her and loved her completely... I don't know, it's just an idea. Probably a pretty stupid one at that." The hero slumped slightly, overcome by his misery.

"Then let's try and figure it out."

Chat was taken aback by her words, but no more than she had been herself. Marinette didn't know what prompted her to utter that sentence but she couldn't find it in her to regret it. Chat's declaration of love had somewhat blindsided her, and she couldn't deny that the idea of someone seeing all of her, and liking all of her, was a very tempting prospect. Marinette really hoped this wouldn't come back to bite her. Oh well, in for a penny...

"You'd really help me?" he asked, slightly in awe. His visits to his classmate was something he had long ago stopped questioning and he knew that they both enjoyed the easy friendship that had blossomed between them. Everything was just so much easier between Marinette and Chat Noir. It was something that he truly valued. There was no expectation or artifice. This, however, was beyond the bounds of their usual relationship.

"Of course, Kitty," she replied affectionately, scratching him under the chin as if he really was a cat. He would never admit to how much he actually enjoyed that. "So, let's start by listing everything you know about her. Oh, hold on," and with that she was gone, disappeared into the pink recesses of her bedroom. Chat barely had time to wonder what had happened before she was back, hauling herself through the skylight, a small notebook and pen in her hands. "Might as well do this properly," she explained.

Marinette opened the book and held the pen poised, looking expectantly at Chat Noir.

"Well," he pondered, thinking over everything he knew about the spotted hero. "I know that she likes gaming," he paused to allow Marinette to jot this down and remembered briefly the time the two of _them_ had practiced for the gaming tournament, before he brought his mind back to his next point about Ladybug. It was painfully obvious to Chat Noir who he _wished_ Ladybug was. He just needed to stop his desperate desires from clouding the truth. The more he wanted Marinette Dupain-Cheng to be the woman he had been pining after, the more she fit in with his Lady. It would be all too easy. He liked Marinette. A lot. The guilt he felt over it was eating away at him. Chat decided to turn back to the job at hand. Marinette was trying to help him figure out who the love of his life was behind the mask. She really was a good friend.

"I know that she has blue eyes and dark hair," he paused again as the pen scratched across the page. Chat took a moment to admire the pair of bluebell eyes beside him. It wasn't often that he allowed himself to notice just how beautiful they were. With the lights of Paris before them, her orbs reflected them back like stars swirling in galaxies. _Focus Chat_.

"I know she hates liars." Marinette hated liars too, although, really, who _liked_ liars? _Stop it_!!

"She always smells like cookies..." his mind wondered once again to the girl who lived in a bakery. It was getting harder and harder for him to focus on his superhero partner.

"When we first met, she introduced herself as 'Madly Clumsy'," Chat remembered with a smile. Marinette shifted in her seat, putting the notepad on the small table beside her in order to better take notes. The smile quickly fell from his lips as the girl next to him knocked over the cup of hot chocolate she had placed on the same table previously, spilling the contents over the floor and just barely managing to save the notes from a similar fate.

Chat Noir quickly jumped to his feet, a sense of panic consuming him. _Could it...? No... She wouldn't... would she? It can't be... No..._

"I um... just remembered... I have a... thing. What I mean to say is..." Chat's eyes cast about him looking for inspiration before they settled back onto the bluenette. "I'm meant to be meeting Ladybug. Yep. Right now. So..." and without another word, Chat Noir withdrew his baton and threw himself off of the balcony into the welcoming black of the Parisian night.

Marinette was left staring after her partner, a small smile across her lips.  


	2. Madly Clumsy Part 2

_Please please please please please let it be her._

This is what had been going through Adrien's mind over and over again since the previous night. He had once said that whoever she was under the mask, he loved Ladybug. And he did. For everything she was, he loved her. Her courage, her quick-thinking, her compassion and her ability to overcome her own insecurities for the good of Paris. It didn't hurt that she was incredibly beautiful.

Despite this, Adrien couldn't deny that it would be a lot easier if Ladybug was Marinette Dupain-Cheng.

After she had suggested writing down everything he knew about his Lady, he couldn't help but draw comparisons. Adrien desperately hoped that he wasn't jumping to conclusions. There were an _awful_ lot of similarities though, now that he was actually thinking about it. But if it was Marinette's suggestion, and would she really want him to know, if she was _actually_ Ladybug? If she _was_ , maybe she wanted him to find her. The thought made him indescribably happy.

He pushed out his desk chair, letting his head flop back and sighing in exasperation. He shouldn't have run away from her. If she really was Ladybug then she must have realised that he was at least starting to figure it out. What if she thought he ran away because he didn't like her.

Suddenly he was desperate to see her again. Before he could do anything about it, he heard a knock. Adrien stood up, turning towards his bedroom door, checking to make sure that Plagg was hidden away. As he started walking, unhappy to be disturbed from his musings by what would undoubtedly be another demand on his time from his father, he heard the knock again.

From behind him.

Adrien whipped around and stumbled back a step when he saw Ladybug hanging outside his window, smiling and waving sheepishly at him. His face flooded with heat and he had to hold himself back from leaping across the room to let her in. He opened the window and she perched on the frame, one leg dangling into his room but making no move to actually enter.

"May I come in?" she enquired shyly, and Adrien was taken aback by this more timid side to her. This wasn't a Ladybug he was used to seeing, but his mind was screaming the same thing at him over and over. _Marinette Dupain-Cheng_.

Marinette was shy. Marinette was polite and uncertain. Marinette was Ladybug.

 _Don't get ahead of yourself, Agreste, you don't know for certain_ , he had to remind himself.

Adrien stepped back, the blush still on his cheeks, and gestured for her to enter. He didn't trust himself to speak just yet.

Marinette had spent the evening after Chat had left thinking about what had happened. She was fairly certain he had figured it out, or at least was getting a good idea. Why did he run away? Was it because he hated the idea of Marinette Dupain-Cheng as Ladybug? She hoped not. He must like her, at least a little. Why else would he visit her so much? So maybe he ran because he needed time to think.

Well, she needed time to think too. The next day, Marinette had decided to create her own list. The conclusion she had come to had her desperately hoping that her Ladybug luck could really be that good. So here she was now, testing a theory and desperately hoping.

She stepped into the room and allowed her Ladybug confidence to take over. "So, I was wondering if you could help me with something?" she started, smiling sweetly at him. Adrien's blush doubled in heat. He could feel the burn and was sure she could too.

"Uh... y-yeah. O-of -course," he stuttered and mentally facepalmed at his lack of cool. "Anything for one of Paris' heroes."

Ladybug strolled towards his desk, resting her hand on his shoulder as she passed and Adrien felt his knees buckle slightly. He moved to pull out a chair for her, partly due to his inherent chivalry but mostly to cover his traitorous legs.

"What do you need?" He was glad that he could manage a sentence without stuttering.

"Well," she began, making herself comfortable on the desk chair that Adrien had just vacated. "I was hoping that maybe you could help me figure out who Chat Noir is."

Adrien froze at her words, his mind coming to a standstill. Ladybug acted as if she didn't notice but she took some encouragement from his actions.

"I thought that maybe if I made a list of everything I know about him, that maybe I could figure out who he is. See I could just ask him, and I'm sure that he would tell me, but I think I want to figure it out by myself. I think it would mean more if I saw him, you know, really _saw him_ , for who he is."

Adrien nodded mutely, his brain still struggling to wrap around the situation he suddenly found himself in.

"Wh-why me?" he asked, the dreaded stutter back. "Why are you asking for my help?"

Ladybug looked at him considering.

"I think you would be able to help, that's all."

Adrien nodded his ascent, not daring to hope that all his dreams were coming true _right now_. He scrambled in his desk to find a pencil and piece of paper that didn't have the word Ladybug written on it surrounded by hearts. It took him longer than he would have liked.

Seeing he was ready, she began. "Well, I know that he is kind, and generous, and brave and strong. He doesn't have the best relationship with his father," she paused when Adrien made no move to write down what she said and nodded towards the piece of paper before him. He hurriedly wrote down what she had said.

Smiling in satisfaction she continued.

"He has blonde hair, and gorgeous green eyes. He acts carefree and he's flirtatious, but I think that's a bit of an act. Not completely, but I think he uses it to hide his insecurities. I also think that maybe he's a bit restricted in real life and when he's transformed he can just be free, be himself."

Adrien was barely breathing while he sat next to her. Ladybug decided to throw her cards on the table and pray that she wasn't wrong, that she wasn't misreading all the signs.

"And lastly, I was really, really hoping that he might be you."

Everything clicked together for both of them. Adrien's lips were suddenly on hers, his hand gently cupping her cheek.

"Marinette," he sighed against her soft pink lips, relishing in the feel of her.

They both had their eyes closed when a flash of pink lit up the room.


End file.
